Write a Short Story
8 weeks · 3 milestones
Write a complete short story of at least 1,000 words with a real beginning, middle, and end. It can be any genre — adventure, mystery, sci-fi, or something entirely your own. Share it with your teacher, post it on a class blog, or submit it to a school anthology. A document link or file attachment is proof.
Milestone map
Milestone map
3 milestones
Before writing a word of the story itself, produce a story plan that maps out three things: who the main character is and what they want, what problem or conflict stands between them and what they want, and how that conflict is resolved by the end. The plan can be a few paragraphs, a bullet-point outline, or a scene-by-scene list — whatever format lets you see the whole arc before you start. The goal is not to make the plan perfect but to have answered the three questions so you do not lose track of where the story is going when you are deep in the middle. A story plan that only describes the character without naming their problem or the resolution is not finished.
Proof required
In a short document or written submission: describe your main character and what they want, the core problem or conflict they face, and how the story resolves. Your plan should be detailed enough that someone else could follow it to write the story without asking you clarifying questions.
What gets checked
- Plan answers all three questions: character + goal, conflict, resolution — a plan that addresses only the character or only the conflict does not pass; all three must be present
- Resolution is specific — 'the problem gets solved somehow' does not pass; the plan must say how: who does what, what changes, and what is different about the character's world at the end
- Plan is written before the draft begins — if the draft already exists in its final form when the plan is submitted, the order was reversed; verify the submission date of the plan against the draft